Sorry it's been so long. Granted, I managed to be able to pump out a new chapter every one or two days, but I've been busy with finals. And, I've also been working on a new song for my friends. So, my focus has been really split.

You know, something funny, I never intended the Su and Shinobu thing to happen. In reality, when I planned this story from scratch, it was all about the Motoko and Kitsune. But, midway through writing chapter 3, I wanted to write more for the other characters. Haruka's role was obvious. Naru and Kei, obvious. But as for Su and Shinobu, I didn't know exactly what their conflict could possibly be. However, the whole thing that I started just kind of happened when I decided that Keisuke would come to the Hinata House. And, thus, a side story was born. Weird.

- - -

Pink Camellias
07 – Liars
SethSolare

- - -

Motoko, after having spent nearly five hours with Kitsune talking in the teahouse, decided that they should probably head back inside. Motoko's smile would simply not fade from her face the whole time. She had finally had her first real kiss with someone that she genuinely care about. And it felt more special this time than any other kiss.

Inside the house at the landing of the second floor, Kitsune finally pried her hand away from Motoko's. She smiled at her and said, "I'm going to head down to the baths. Join me?"

"In a bit. I'm gonna go change real quick. And I left my room in a mess this morning and I feel weird leaving it like that," she said.

"Aww. Were you frustrated over me?"

Motoko blushed before heading upstairs to her room. She felt too entirely new to relationships to feel comfortable about admitting her faults. "Of course, she's been living with me forever. She could probably embarrass me in ways I could never think of," she thought. Yet, as worried as she felt, her smile wouldn't disappear.

She was happy.

With a sigh, she slid open the door to her room. Within, she saw that the entire room had been cleaned. Her futon was rolled up. Her books were in their shelves. Her sword was in the display rack. However, one thing seemed out of place.

"Hey," Su greeted sadly from the middle of the room. She sat calmly at the table like a proper girl. Her hands fiddled with a pencil in the middle of the table as she turned toward Motoko. "Where've you been all day? And why's your hair look horrible?"

"I was with Kitsune," she admitted. "We spent the day in the teahouse talking about stuff."

"Oh," Su said, returning her gaze back to the pencil.

"You seem down," Motoko said.

"You seem up."

Motoko stifled a giggle trying not to make an obviously down Su feel worse or uncomfortable. Motoko turned away, removing her tank top and jeans. "I feel weird now that I can say that I'm… a lesbian? Is my getting naked in from of Su weird?" she asked herself. "Think nothing of it Motoko."

"So, do you want to talk about it?" Motoko asked casually.

"Yes. Why do you think I've been waiting for you all day?" Su responded with an angered tone.

Motoko turned toward her friend, her smile finally gone. Motoko's eyebrows furrowed, puzzled at Su's attitude. In all the time she's known her, Su's only acted this strange since she lost her front tooth many years ago. And, even then, it didn't seem like anything that horrible. A date from Keitaro cheered her up.

This, however, didn't seem quite as fixable.

"Okay, so what's really bugging you?"

Su suddenly felt nervous, seeing as how the two had never talked much like this ever. True, as Su got older, her conversations with Motoko became more serious than playful. However, nothing seemed quite like this.

"I screwed up. I mean, badly." Su paled a bit as she looked up at her friend.

"It can't be all bad. I mean, we always fix the house when mecha-tama starts blowing stuff up," Motoko smiled.

Su let out a groan, "It's not something stupid like that, Motoko." She stood up from her seat on the floor. She turned around and sat cross-legged on the table. "And if you're all nervous about changing in front me, I'm all turned around."

"Huh? Oh, no. I'm not at all," she responded, starting to unwrap the cloth bandage around her chest. "I'm just wondering why you're not your usual self."

"You mean a happy happy girl that's not selfish? Someone who isn't afraid of being without a guy just so her friend can be happy? Please, tell me what I am, because, apparently, I'm looking more and more like a horrible person," Su threw the pencil at the wall in front of her, a slight clack on the wall and another on the floor. She hunched over, clasping her hands together in front of her.

"You're not selfish. You're not a bad person at all, Su."

"Really? Because I basically just did the worst thing ever."

Pulling a t-shirt over her head and sliding into some shorts, Motoko continued, "Well, I know you. You like to fix things. You like to make things better. And, whatever you think you did, I know you'll find it in you to fix it."

Su turned around toward Motoko, angered and crying, "I made out with Shinobu's boyfriend! What on earth could I do to fix that? He cheated on her and I let him. How is that supposed to be fixed? Tell me, because I have no idea what to do." She slammed the table with her fist as hard as she could. She hated the person she that she degraded into that night.

"I not only made out with him, I liked it. When I kissed him, I gave in to him like I was going to make him my boyfriend. I wanted to steal him from Shinobu because she's just so happy. And I have to watch Keitaro and Naru and now those two be all happy. And I'm tired of watching these people be happy. I've got nothing. And now I'm a jealous girl that wants other people's things!" Su yelled, her words running together.

Motoko froze. She had not once seen Su act like this before. She had no idea what to say, considering that she hadn't had to deal with matters of the heart until a few days ago. But cheating was a far different story. She had no idea what kind to even think. She simply stayed any response.

Su sat back down slowly on the floor, feet tucked under the table. Motoko, watching Su carefully with a certain disbelief, did likewise. "I'm horrible, Motoko. I wanted something that was Shinobu's. I wanted her happiness. And I took it from her," Su said solemnly. "I hit him after he kissed me, but that doesn't change the fact that I kissed him back."

Motoko, seeing a time for advice, offered, "Maybe if you tell Shinobu that you realized what you were doing was wrong, she might forgive you. If he forced himself onto you, then maybe it won't ruin your friendship. And I'm sure Shinobu would give you the benefit of the doubt."

Su stood up and picked up the pencil she threw at the wall. It wasn't necessary, but she felt she had to do something at this time. She was anxious. She wanted to get this all past.

"Of course, if you want Keisuke, that's a different story." Motoko's words elicited a quick look from Su. Her mouth slowly began to open. Her breathing shortened, staggered.

"I loved it when he kissed me." Su said the words with tears. "I wanted to hate him. But I don't want to be alone, Motoko. I don't want to feel like crap when I see everyone around me being in love!"

"Well, sadly, I have to say that now, you have to decide if you want to have Shinobu or Keisuke. In either case, you lose something. And that's as real as it gets, Su." Motoko rose from her seat walked over to Su. She took hold of the younger girl as she buried herself into Motoko.

"I think Shinobu's a far better friend than a boyfriend that has a history of cheating, don't you?" Motoko asked after a few minutes.

Su nodded into Motoko's chest, wiping away her tears in her t-shirt. "I should talk to her," Su said, her voice muffled under Motoko.

"Good idea."

Su released her grasp on Motoko. The dark haired woman went over to her dresser to get a towel for the baths. She remembered that Kitsune was there, and a slow smile crept across her face. Visibly, though, she stifled it to the best of her efforts, which weren't all that great to begin with.

"And why're you so happy today?" Su asked, about to leave the room.

Motoko turned toward her friend and sighed. With a calm smile, she said, "It's a secret. And I'm not sure I want to go telling people yet. It just means a lot."

"Did you get drunk or something?" Su asked sarcastically.

Motoko simply laughed and left Su behind in the room. Confused, Su did likewise.

She had to find Shinobu.

- -

That evening, Naru watched as Tama floated around her in the hot baths. From time to time, Mutsumi, who decided to spend some time with her friends, would take hold of the turtle and seemingly speak with her. The rain earlier on in the day had finally stopped and the baths seemed more than a good idea. However, it seemed that no one else in the house was even around or wanted to do anything. In the end, only Naru and Mutsumi felt like doing anything, it seemed.

Naru sighed heavily as Tama floated in front of her. Tama tapped on Naru's forehead with a flipper before landing on top. "What's with everyone today?" Naru asked.

"What do you mean?" Mutsumi responded. She seemed very tickled by Tama's current position.

"I mean, everyone's wigging out or something. And I haven't even heard from Motoko or Kitsune all day." Naru slouched over a bit. "And Shinobu's suddenly become a world all by herself. And Su hasn't kicked Keitaro once all day."

"I've seen Motoko and Kitsune today," Mutsumi offered.

"Really? Where were they?"

"Well, they seemed to be having a nice conversation in the teahouse when I came over. And-" She was interrupted by a sliding door.

"Hey, you two," Kitsune's voice called. She walked on over to the two girls in the hot spring with a huge smile on her face. She seemed to simply exude an aura of happiness as she stepped in through the steam. Naru gave her an incredibly strange look as she sat down opposite to the two girls.

"Are you drunk, Kitsune?" Naru asked, seemingly shocked at her current demeanor.

"Nope."

"Are you okay? Because when we last talked this morning, you were totally out of it."

Mutsumi smiled at Naru. "I bet I know why she's smiling," Mutsumi said. The other two looked over at Mutsumi. Kitsune was interested because she didn't even think Mutsumi knew what could've happened at the Teahouse. "She can't wait to find out if she got into Tokyo U, tomorrow!"

"Um, she didn't even apply!" Naru yelled. "Now, I demand that Kitsune tell me what happened. Something awesome must've happened today. And now you've got me all curious," she said turning back toward Kitsune.

"I'm not telling," she responded playfully.

"Maybe she drunk," Mutsumi said. "Most people that are drunk usually say they're not. I know I do!"

"I can't believe you're in Tokyo U," Naru said with a bit of a laugh. "Now, come on, Kitsune," Naru said in a quieter voice. "Tell us what happened today."

Kitsune smiled happily and ignored Naru's request. She, instead, closed her eyes and looked up at the sky. She was already happy with her wonderful, rain-touched kiss that keeping it a secret seemed even more special. And, attempting to satisfy her curiosity, Naru continued to drill Kitsune with guess after guess.

Then, from behind, another girl walked into the bath. Motoko stepped into the baths as the other girls turned to look at her. Motoko tried as best as she could to hold in her smile. She looked back at the puzzled girls and walked over next to Kitsune. Naru stared at the two with a quizzical look, trying to figure out what was going on.

Then, with a slow realization, Naru figured it out. The others could visibly see her insight that quickly encompassed an, "Oh my god!" She clasped her hands to her mouth. Tama popped off of her head with a "Myuh?" before flying over to Mutsumi.

"Oh, I know!" Mutsumi exclaimed. "I knew there was something to you guys kissing earlier." Naru dropped her hands into the water and laughed.

"Wow, you guys kissed?" she asked, her face seemed to glow with happiness for the other two girls.

Motoko and Kitsune nodded together in agreement.

"Aww, that's so cute. You guys even answer questions together." Naru tried to contain her happiness for the two girls, but she just kept smiling. More so, the other three's smiles were simply contagious.

"Well, Mutsumi and I should leave you two alone. Right?" She stood, turning towards Mutsumi who did likewise. "I'm sure you two would like to be alone. And I'm going to find Kei."

Mutsumi and Naru walked past the two girls to get back into the house. However, Motoko grabbed hold of Naru's arm before she could get out. Kitsune turned to face her best friend.

"Please don't tell him, yet. He was so kind in helping me that I want to tell him myself," Kitsune requested. Naru nodded, before turning away from the two women in love.

"They seem so nice together don't they?" Mutsumi whispered as Naru walked past her into the adjacent room.

"They really do. They're complete opposites, but I think that's what makes it so much sweeter," she giggled. Naru, then, put on some clothes and wrapped up her hair in a towel. As she walked to her room, she felt uncontrollably happy for her two closest friends.

- -

Su looked all over the house for Shinobu. The last place she looked was the laundry deck. And as she opened the door to the deck, she peeked out. She inched her way up the stairs, looking around for her friend. As she reached the top of the steps, there was no one on the deck.

Feeling her search was over, she turned to go back inside the house. Then, though, she saw Shinobu sitting on the end of the roof. "That's her favorite spot. Guess I should stop putting this off."

Su climbed up onto the roof, balancing herself on the incline. She climbed up on to the top of the incline and walked over to the dark haired girl on the ledge. Her soft footsteps crept slowly behind Shinobu. She coughed slightly, taking a seat behind her friend, her feet firmly planted on one side of the roof.

"So how're you?" Su asked, her voice bright.

Shinobu said nothing.

After a few seconds of silence, Su attempted to continue. "So, I have something I need to tell you," she started. Su looked over at Shinobu, staring at the back of her head. She swallowed hard, taking in a deep breath. Following a soft exhale, "When Keisuke was here last time, something… happened. We were in your room and I ended up hitting him."

Shinobu didn't budge or even make a sound. She sat still.

"Well, I had to hit him. I mean, he was there. And, well, he tried to… I-"

"I already know what you have to say Su. 'You're sorry.' 'You want to fix things.'" Shinobu's voice strained. Her words felt choked in her throat. "You can't. You're always destroying things. You're always trying to steal my life, Su."

Su's mouth opened slightly, her eyes widened slightly. In her mind, she thought, "How?" But, she already knew how.

"I saw you. I saw you kiss him. And I saw how you wanted him," Shinobu turned toward Su. Her eyes were red, but dry. She stared intently at Su, who stared back in disbelief. "I will never forgive you. You took the most precious thing to me."

Shinobu stood from her place, staring directly at Su whose eyes followed. Shinobu walked down the roof and back onto the laundry deck. Her eyes turned back toward Su once again. "You know, when he left the house, he even told me he loved me." She paused, looking toward the door. "I told him I never wanted to see him again."

- - -

Alright, like I said, this side story with Su and Shinobu kind of came out of nowhere. However, it seems that I do, indeed, really want to keep it up. It's actually kind of intriguing. Granted, this chapter wasn't quite up to par as I had hoped it would be.

Or maybe I just feel unmotivated because I should be studying for summer session finals. .

In any case, I hope you all are okay with some slight exposition and character development. Nothing really resolving or conflicting. The next chapter, though, will be very good. Or, at least, I hope it will be. P

Also, a bit of rant from me, Motoko's sword that you commonly see in the manga and anime, the one without the hand guard, isn't a proper samurai sword that one of her school would be using. The sword without a hand guard, cloth grip, or separate scabbard is called Shirasaya.

A Shirasaya is basically the blade and tang, which is one whole piece of metal, built into a single piece of wood. When the sword was not going to be used for a while or would be kept in storage, the blade was meant to be stored in shirasaya. This was meant to keep the blade protected while not in use. Using a blade in shirasaya wasn't exactly recommended because the scabbard and hilt were a piece of wood that was simply cut in half, hollowed out to fit, and glued back together with rice glue. Granted, the stuff is pretty strong, but it's not gonna keep the sword together when swinging.

Also, as an aside, a katana isn't exactly a type of sword itself, but more or less a way of wearing one. The blade of a katana is meant to point up, not down. It is also tied to or thrust into an obi, or belt. If it is suspended from a belt, like in some European swords (or from FFVII: AC, the main bad guy… forgot his name), and the blade points down, it is a Tachi.

Cool huh? And sorry for taking up a lot of space and making it look like I actually wrote more story than I did. But I like doing research on the characters. Also, as a note, when Motoko fights her sister, she uses an actual Daito, which is what a katana is when it's not being worn.

SS